<script type="text/javascript" charset="utf-8" src="http://static.polldaddy.com/p/7026028.js"></script> <noscript><a href="http://polldaddy.com/poll/7026028/">On which MBTA line do you most frequently ride?</a></noscript>
Next

Handout

That time they announced the T would stay open later

Students, techies, and late night revelers rejoiced when the MBTA announced it was reinstating its late night service.

The one-year pilot program will keep subway trains and 15 popular buses (the 1, 15, 22, 23, 28, 32, 39, 57, 66, 71, 73, 77, 111, 116, and 117) running until 3 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The program is slated to begin in March or April.

Gov. Deval Patrick told the Globe the late night service will be funded by $20 million in state money and corporate sponsorships.
Next

There’s been no formal announcement, but the cell phone network acknowleged it’s expanding its Blue, Orange, Green and Red line coverage. It forged an agreement with the MBTA and InSite Wireless Group about the coverage expansion in July.
Next

Twitter

That time they claimed the @MBTA Twitter handle

The MBTA announced a big social media move in mid-September: it was switching its offical Twitter handle from @mbtaGM to @MBTA.

The announcement came after a years-long battle to unseat a “Twitter squatter,” said the MBTA. The T appealed to Twitter’s impersonation policy and eventually got word that the handle was theirs to keep.

@mbtaGM’s 45,000 followers were automatically tranferred to the new account.

“Switching from @mbtaGM to @MBTA will help in streamlining the MBTA’s online presence and will make it easier for new followers to find the T’s Twitter account,” the agency said in an announcement.
Next

MBTA

That time the Green Line got electronic signs

The MBTA unveiled electronic message boards inside Kenmore Station on Sept. 19. The signs tell passengers waiting to ride outbound which Green Line train – a B, C, or D – will arrive next, but unlike signs around other parts of the MBTA, they do not say when trains will arrive.

T officials say the public transit agency expects to announce “in the coming months” a schedule for when “a more sophisticated vehicle tracking system” will be installed along the Green Line.

The transit system launched the Perspectives MBTA Map Re-design competition in the spring. According to the MBTA, the competition came at a good time, as it needs to modify and re-design system maps because of the opening of multiple new projects, including new Fairmount Line stations, the opening of the Assembly Square Station next year, and the coming Green Line extension.

“Having missed the train many times while fishing for our Charlie Cards (smart cards used for public transportation in Massachusetts), we looked for a solution in wearable technology. After months of hard work, we created the 3D-printed Sesame Ring, supported by the MBTA,” the project page states. “Now, you can walk right up to the gantry, use scientifically approved magic, and scoot on through!”

Network Solutions, which manages more than 7 million domains, 1.5 million e-mailboxes, and 350,000 websites, experienced distributed denial of service attacks, disrupting websites and Internet services like email.

“It’s a complicated problem and something that’s well outside of our control,” said Gary Foster, chief technology officer for the T, told the Globe.

The state transportation department website, which is also managed by Network Solutions, was not impacted by the cyberattack.

You may have heard that message played at the T stations on your commute.

The MBTA launched the recording as part of a campaign to protect staff. During the first four months of 2013, there were 28 reported assaults on MBTA employees.

In addition to the recorded message, the T planned to add surveillance cameras inside buses, expand staff protection training, and install partitions to separate bus drivers from passengers, reported the Globe in early May.

“I want you to know . . . that we will not sit by idly and let these egregious acts go unanswered,” MBTA general manager Beverly Scott wrote in a letter to T employees in April. “Certainly, getting assaulted is not part of any T employee’s job.”
Next

Instead of moaning about delays or crowds on social media, she sketched the MBTA’s stations, finding beauty in the banal.

Meilman plans to draw each of the MBTA’s 121 subway stops. Once finished, she said she will exhibit her collection for the public.
Next

Josh Reynolds for The Boston Globe

That time they restarted service to Cape Cod

Memorial Day weekend brought the return of the CapeFlyer, the MBTA’s rail service from Boston to Hyannis.

Commuter trains have traveled the route intermittently since 1854, according to a story by the Globe. Despite its history of financial troubles, the MBTA said it believed the popularity of the destination and ease of travel would keep this iteration of the route in the black.

The CapeFlyer is scheduled to run Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from Memorial Day to Labor Day. One-way trips are about two hours and 40 minutes.

Elise Amendola/AP

That time they shut down the T for 12 hours

The manhunt for the Boston Marathon Bombing suspect closed the City of Boston, surrounding communities, and the MBTA.

Subway and bus service was shut down for about 12 hours. Commuter rail, ferry service, and the RIDE remained closed for 24 hours.

Copley Station, at the heart of the bombing crime scene, was shuttered for the length of the investigation.
Next

Bizuayehu Tesfaye for The Boston Globe

That time people in wheelchairs protested the MBTA

A group of seniors and people with disabilities used wheelchairs to block traffic in front of the State House to protest fare hikes for the MBTA’s The Ride program on April 8. Four protesters were arrested during the 30-minute demonstration.

Police did not arrest anyone in a wheelchair, but moved them to the sidewalk when they refused to move of their own accord. No one resisted arrest; there were no injuries.

The Ride fares were doubled in 2012 from $2 to $4, with higher prices for those who live outside of Boston.

‘‘Folks have been denied transit, people stuck in their homes and unable to get to the doctor,’’ said Carolyn Villers, executive director of the Mass Senior Action Council. ‘‘We’re trying to help folks understand the urgency and the real crisis.”
Next

“With safety being a top priority, the Red Line has developed a new inspection procedure for the older Red Line cars that have this type of mechanism in the door,” MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said in an e-mail after the incident. “All of the older Red Line cars are being checked.”

The MBTA’s police chief announced violent crime on the transit system dropped by one-third in the first three months of 2013 compared with the same period of 2012, but that is not to say that Boston’s transit system has been crime-free.

A 19-year-old Wakefield man was charged after allegedly spitting in a bus driver’s face and then punching him in the nose in Malden on April 9.

Snowstorm Nemo shut down the city of Boston, its suburbs, and its transit system.

In an unprecedented move, the MBTA decided to stop service ahead of the height of the snowstorm, keeping it suspended for nearly 48 hours.

The MBTA’s chief operating officer, Sean M. McCarthy, said after the storm that the shutdown helped protect the T’s equipment from the elements.

“At the stage of their life that our vehicles are, we put a lot of capital and effort into nursing and keeping those vehicles safe and reliable,” McCarthy said. “To the extent that we can conserve that, it’s incumbent upon us to do that.”
Next

The screens were provided at no cost as part of a partnership with Titan Digital Advertisting. There are three 70-inch screens in the station’s main atrium and five 55-inch ones in the inbound and outbound train platforms.

The MBTA said the screens will display advertisements, service alerts, and other real-time information.

Park Street and North and South stations received advertisement display screens in March.
Next

The fire, which turned out to be a smoldering wire found at Arlington Station, displaced hundreds of commuters on Jan. 23.

Service was suspended between Kenmore Square and Government Center stations. The T sent shuttle buses to replace the trains, but many riders were forced to walk to work in single-digit temperatures or squeeze onto packed buses.

T service resumed at 11 a.m., after being suspended for nearly three hours.
Next

Samantha Laine for Boston.com

That time riders forgot their pants

The sixth annual No Pants Subway Ride came to Boston on Jan. 13, and with it came hundreds of bare legs.

The event was sponsored by BostonSOS, a local social arts and event group.

“No matter how popular it gets . . . there are always a ton of people who don’t know what’s going on,” James Cobalt, the executive director of BostonSOS, said. “For me, the most interesting thing of all (with this event) is to see how people try to perceive and understand what’s going on. For me, it’s just silly . . . For a lot of people, that’s not enough.”
Back to the beginning